Picture Perfect

and beauty, but it was very sterile and cold. I’m guessing it cost more than I’ll make in my entire life, but I couldn’t live in something like that if you paid me.
    A woman who identified herself as “Pam; the party planner” opened the door to the glass palace. She handed my clutch off to a waiting assistant, and then escorted me into what I’d assume would be called a living room, even though the term would be very generous. Just like the outside of the house, it was extremely uninviting. Oh, sure, it was probably a designer’s wet dream, but it was so damn unwelcoming that I shuddered. Everything in the room had hard lines and edges. The chairs and sofas were steel colored rectangles and squares with not a throw pillow in site. You had to love this part of the LA scene, all about the aesthetics, never about the comfort level.
    There were several people already in the room, and I was relieved to see Ian. He was standing with a beautiful girl in a black bodysuit. She had an exotic look that paired well with Ian’s California boy appearance. I couldn’t help but see them through my camera lens. It’s a professional hazard. As I was heading over to where they were, Ian saw me and held out his hand to pull me into their space. “Tessa, this is Devon Bannister. Devon is directing the documentary that’s being filmed of the tour. Devon, this is Tessa Hamilton. Tessa is…”
    Waving him off, Devon smiled and held her hand out to me. “I know who just who you are! Flynn showed me your website. Your pictures are amazing. The one of you with the band was unreal. I’ve been so anxious to meet you to discuss your vision for photos and mine for the film so that we can work it all out together. Once the tour starts there will be some days that you’re shooting where I’ll have my crew there to interview the guys and capture everything that happens. I also have an idea of what I want to movie poster to look like, and I’m hoping you’ll love the idea as much as I do.”
    I couldn’t help but smile at what a whirling dervish Devon was. We were going to get along great. I relaxed a bit more, happy that I’d really liked both of the people that I’d met today who were going to be sharing the road experience with me for the next several months.
    Accepting a glass of champagne from a server carrying a silver tray, I started to get into a conversation with Devon about her idea for the movie poster. Before she could share her vision, I felt the air in the room shift. Nothing about Ian or Devon changed, but I could feel the difference in a big way. Smiling over my shoulder Ian said, “Hey Flynn! You haven’t met Tessa in person yet, have you?”
    Reminding myself to breathe, I held it together beautifully when Flynn stepped next to me for Ian to introduce us. At least I did until Flynn met my eyes for the first time in six years and then took my hand in his.
    For a moment time stood still and there wasn’t anything or anyone else in the room. Hell, there wasn’t even a room. It was just Flynn and I. Not Flynn Rand, hotter than hell singer, but Flynn Rand, the man. And what a man he was. I had a hard time remembering that I’d seen his face, looked into his eyes and heard his voice before, and I was alarmed that in seconds I was wet.
    No, not just wet, drenched.
    The sound of Devon’s throaty laugh pulled me back from wherever it was that I’d gone, and I smiled up at Flynn with what I hoped was a normal expression as opposed to an, “I’m so hot right now that I’d like you to take me into another room, bend me over and take me as hard as humanly possible” look.
    He smiled back at me as his hand continued to hold onto mine, and while his face looked calm, the eyes looking back into mine were anything but. They were full of pure unadulterated, “I want to fucking pound you” lust, and I clenched my inner muscles so hard in response to that look that I almost came on the spot.
    Jesus Christ, I was a groupie cliché.
    What.
    The.
    Fuck ?

Chapter Five

    Even with only the benefit of a rear view, I knew without a doubt that it was Tessa. I could feel it. I could see that she was in conversation with Ian and Devon, but fuck if I cared. Now that I had her in my sights, I needed to meet her. If the front was as alluring as the back, I was going to need to work hard to keep myself in check for the rest of the night. She was wearing some sexy as hell red number, and I’d already decided she had the most